Strength
by Miss Nemesis
Summary: Shane was waiting for the farmer to come home, but it's late and he's getting worried. (Farmer isn't the reader and uses they/them pronouns.)
1. Chapter 1

They were late. Not that there was a certain time that they were supposed to be back, but still they normally came home by at least midnight. A few times they didn't come in until he had already gone to bed, but normally they would come over, give him a kiss and let him know that they were home before changing out of their dirty clothes and crawling into bed herself. But even then it was no later than two in the morning.

Now, however, it was nearing two-thirty and they still weren't home.

Shane had a rather bad day at Joja, and he didn't have to work the next day, so tonight he had decided to stay up and drink while waiting for them to come back and maybe enjoy some time with them as well, if they were up for it. It wasn't until after midnight and he had already downed a few beers that he had fully realized that something might be off. He wasn't entirely sure why he felt like that, it wasn't too far past their normal arrival time, so why was he worried? Besides, they're strong enough to carry themself and his shit with ease, and in more ways than one.

He really did have an overwhelming amount of baggage that they had to put up with. Not that he could understand why, but they seemed to not just put up with it, but happily accept it, and even tried to help him when he needed it. (And sometimes even when he didn't.) If it hadn't of been for them sometime about a year ago, he'd likely of rolled himself off that cliff by now. It was because they were there for him that night that he started to realize that things might not be as bad as he thought they were.

It was 2:47 and they were still to be heard from.

What could they be doing? It's not like anyone else would be up this late for them to get caught up talking to… right? Or would they- no. No, they would never. But they did secretly give Harvey a gift a few days ago, and it wasn't even his birthday. Maybe they were secretly meeting up with him now as well? That sort of thing wasn't exactly unheard of in this town. No. No, no, no, they wouldn't do that. Neither would Harvey for that matter. They were both exceptional people. He was just horrible for thinking that they were anything but, and even more so for doubting them. They deserved better than that, much better.

…

He needed to get away from that mindset. Sitting around as he had been probably wasn't the best idea. But he wasn't in the mood to play some Cult Sultan, and they didn't get any good television stations all the way out here. The only other option he had was to head out back and check up on Charlie. With a large gulp, he drank the rest of his beer and stood, leaving the can on the table as he headed for the door.

It was cold outside, but that was to be expected, considering not only was it night, but it was raining as well. It was light enough that he hadn't noticed it when he was inside, but it wasn't just sprinkling either. Grumbling to himself, he stuffed his hands in his pockets and stepped off the deck, not bothering to pull his hood up and just letting the water splash his face. Hopefully, the roof of the chicken hut could hold up well enough to keep them dry. He'd feel beyond horrible if they were to get sick because he couldn't protect them from something like rain.

The door creaked open loudly as Shane pushed inside. The interior was dark, aside from the bit of moonlight shining through the window, but that was enough for him to see the sleeping figures in their nesting boxes. Across from there, a single chicken looked up at him from the perch. It wasn't a white chicken, so he knew it wasn't Charlie, but judging by the way she hopped down and awkwardly hobbled over to him, he knew that it was Chelsey. She had been born with one leg a bit taller than the other, so she couldn't walk as evenly as the others did.

Still, she kept on keeping on. She was strong like that. Shane crouched down and ruffled her feathers a little, lightly scratching behind her neck, and she happily pecked at the ground. "I'd love to play with you," She looked up at the sound of his voice, "but I've gotta look around and make sure this place is still secure enough to keep you safe. Here." He pulled over a plastic container. It was just one of those colored Easter eggs that you'd normally put candy in, but it was taped shut with some holes poked through it. Inside he put some seeds so the birds could play with the egg and eat. Chelsey jumped a bit at the sight of the pink object, but almost immediately began pecking at it, trying to get at the seeds inside of it. Shane smiled fondly as he stood up and stretched out his back.

This certainly wasn't the first time it had rained since he had moved into the farm, and it most definitely wasn't the hardest rain they'd had either, but still, he had to check and make sure that everything was in order. It would help keep his mind off of… _other things _as well, which is what he needed at the moment. He reached for the flashlight he kept on a shelf by the door and pressed the button to turn it on, pointing it up at the ceiling. At first glance, it didn't look like there were any cracks. He shined the light around on the walls; they looked fine as well.

Still, he could always get a better look in the morning when it was brighter and he could see better. It seemed like sometimes, no matter how much he tries to keep the building secure, something still ends up happening. One of the hens gets hurt or sick, just generally unwell. It just goes to show that you can't prepare for absolutely everything, and things can still catch you off guard.

Sometimes no matter how strong or prepared you are, you still end up getting hurt.

…

Maybe that's why they were late. Maybe they got caught off guard and got into some trouble or got hurt… His stomach started doing flips at the thought of it. He needed to find them as fast as possible and make sure that they were okay. They had to be, but he needed to find them and see it for himself.

Being careful not to step on Chelsey, Shane exited the coop and made his way towards the farm. He decided that that should be the first place he looked, in case they had tried to come home and simply passed out from pure exhaustion. They may be strong, but still, they tended to overexert themselves on occasion. He shined the flashlight on the stone path in front of him and followed the stone path to the enclosed area for the barn and coop. From what he could tell, they weren't in the surrounding patches of grass. He peeked into the nearest building, the chicken coop, and then when they weren't there, he went to the barn.

She wasn't in there either. But that's okay, he wasn't actually expecting them to be in there, since they always did all of their business on the farm early in the morning, so it was highly unlikely that they would have been in any of those buildings. He had just figured that since they were the closest places to check, so why not write them off first.

After checking the greenhouse as well, he walked around the farm one last time to fully confirm that he hadn't just missed them and that they weren't there.

The next place of interest was around Marnie's Ranch. Maybe they were out fishing and either hadn't left their spot yet or also collapsed on their way home. The deck creaked as he stepped on the old, moldy wood. It was obvious that they weren't there, he could see most of the lake from where he stood, but he wanted to get a closer look anyway. As he approached the other end, he smiled fondly. This was where their relationship had really started. Before they showed up here and had a drink with him, he had been pretty rude and dismissive towards them. (He was even after then, but not as much.) Fortunately, they were persistent and had continued to talk to him, despite him constantly trying to push them away with harsh words. If it hadn't been for that, they wouldn't be here…

He decided to leave those thoughts at that. It was not the time to reminisce; he had to stop wasting time and find them.

He figured that if he tried to find them in the woods, he would likely just end up getting lost himself. If it was day, it wouldn't have been a problem, but since it was still dark, it was highly likely that he wouldn't be able to see well enough to know where he was. So he decided against it.

Marnie normally locked her place up when she went to bed; Shane has a key, but they don't, so they probably weren't there either. Unless they were staying the night there for some reason, but if they were, why wouldn't they tell him? No, they definitely would have said something (or at the very least of left a note), so they weren't there either. But Marnie might have an idea where they were. He'd have to ask once the woman woke up. Since it would be a bit until then, he decided to go search around town first. They had to be there, somewhere, probably just somewhere where no one had passed by, so they didn't see them… Probably.

His footsteps seemed much louder than they normally did, which really did not help his nerves. He shined the flashlight around, making sure to check every nook and cranny he passed. All the while, each and every step he took and still no sign of them made him more and more numb. He searched the graveyard, nothing. The beach, nothing. The library, nothing. The park, nothing still. His pace quickened with every spot he searched, but he tried (and failed) to not let panic set in further and take over.

All that was left for him to check was the area around Robin's place and the train station. they hadn't mentioned going to Calico Desert that morning, so it was safe to assume that they weren't there. Of the two options, he thought the later could potentially be more horrific if they happened to be there, so that was where he went first, to get it out of the way. There wasn't much for them to be doing there, unless they had gone to the spa, but he'd seen enough of the news and movies to know that crossing train tracks could be dangerous. They never wore any hazardous shoes (in fact, they almost always wore boots), but a lot of them still had laces.

No, he needed to stop thinking like that. They would be perfectly fine. Just. fine.

The spa was empty. He looked everywhere in there, shining the light into the water, and even checking both dressing rooms. (Admittedly, he felt a bit weird going into the girl's dressing room, but it was necessary. He didn't think anyone would be in there at a time like that, but he called out to let them know he was coming in, in case anyone did happen to be in there for some reason.) Thankfully, they weren't anywhere near the tracks neither.

As he left the area, heading back towards the carpenter's house, he noticed a light on to his left. The homeless man - he vaguely recalled that his name was Linus - was sitting outside his tent, hands outstretched, warming himself by his fire. How it was staying lit while it rained was beyond Shane's comprehension.

"Hey." Shane spoke, approaching the fire. The other man tensed at the sound of his voice and turned slightly to look at him.

"What?" The homeless man said in a defensive tone, "Are you here to ridicule me? I didn't do anything to you."

"Huh? No, why would I-" He remembered Linus not being particularly seen in a good light by a lot of the members of the community. Most of the time everyone was very loving and accepting of each other, but Linus seemed different. And he was. Even as a homeless person he was different than the rest, because he was homeless by _choice_. Why someone would choose a life like that just didn't make sense to a lot of them. Plus, the youths were less accepting than some of the older residents, so it wouldn't be too surprising to hear that some might of treated him badly. There were a few, in particular, Shane could imagine to be the likely culprits.

Shane took a moment to compose himself before continuing. "I was just going to ask if you've seen the farmer anywhere?"

The other man seemed to relax a little, but still shifted uncomfortably. "The farmer? I don't know. I might have seen them at some point. They come around here a lot, though. But why are you asking?" The question came off as less concerned and more… protective? But why, though? Did he think that…

Shane's expression went a little sour, but he tried to hold himself back from full-on glaring at the man in front of him. He was probably just looking out for his friend. Despite his efforts, a dash of poison still seeped into his voice. "Look, I'm just worried about them. They didn't say that they would be going somewhere or staying anywhere else, and they haven't come home yet."

Linus's gaze did not change. "Maybe they didn't want to tell you."

"Of course they-." He stopped as he considered the possibility, but didn't let it linger longer than a few moments. He grit his teeth and replied, "They would tell me if they weren't going to be home."

The two men locked gazes, staring each other down, until Linus finally turned back to his fire. "I don't know where they are." He spoke.

Shane sighed. "Alright. Just- please let me know if you have any idea where they are."

He heard an affirmation as he turned to check the rest of the area.

* * *

Nowhere, they were nowhere. Shane had looked absolutely everywhere, double-checked absolutely everywhere he could think they might actually be, but they were not there. What Linus had said kept coming to mind. "_Maybe they didn't want to tell you." _That couldn't be true… or could it? They had always told him things like that before, but… what if there was something they didn't want to tell him about?

His train of thought went back to that secret gift they had given Harvey. It wasn't even his birthday, so why would they give him a gift like that! It's not like he had done anything that they would feel the need to thank him for. At least, not that Shane knew about…

The sun had risen, so people had to of been awake, and Shane knew the first place he was going to check.

Not caring what time it was or if they were open yet or not, Shane tried the handle to Harvey's Clinic. The door swung open rather furiously, causing the person at the counter to jump in surprise.

"Shane!" Maru exclaimed, more startled than angry, "You scared me!" He didn't reply and made his way over to the front desk. "Is something wrong?" She asked, a concerned expression appearing on her face, "You don't look so good."

"Harvey here?" He asked, ignoring her question.

She rose an eyebrow. "... Yeah…?"

"Go get him." Not giving her a chance to ask why, he turned to go sit down in one of the seats.

The girl stood stunned for a moment before shaking out of her trance and going to go get her boss. A minute or so later, she appeared behind the counter, Harvey coming out from the door not a second after.

"Hey, Shane." The bespectacled man spoke with a smile, "Is there something I can help you with?"

Shane kept his gaze tight and stood up. "Yeah." He spoke with hardness, "I think so. You know where the farmer is, don't you."

The other put on a confused front. "No, I- I don't know that. Is something wrong?"

His gaze stiffened and Harvey shifted, glancing away for just a moment. "I know they gave you a gift a few days ago. Maybe you can tell me why they would do something like that."

He seemed to understand after hearing that. "You mean that cup of coffee."

"Yeah. That cup of coffee. Why did they go out of their way to get you something when it wasn't even your birthday?"

"I'm… honestly not sure." He shifted his weight onto the other foot. "But I assure you, there is nothing going on between me and your spouse. I'd never, ever, even consider doing something like that. I promise."

Either the doctor was really good at lying or he was telling the truth. Shane was silent, trying to mentally take a step back and evaluate the information. From what he could tell, the farmer and Harvey weren't particularly close before. At least, they weren't any closer to him than they were with most of the other people in town. Not that there was anything wrong with the man, but of all people, it didn't make sense for her to choose him to cheat with. That and Harvey did seem like one of the least likely people to be involved with that sort of thing.

Shane sighed and collapsed into the nearest chair. "I know. Sorry for suspecting you."

"It's alright." Harvey smiled gently, sitting in the seat next to him. "I would probably be suspicious, too, if I were you. If you'd like, you can come up and see for yourself if they are here or not."

"No," he leaned forward, holding his head in his hands. "I believe you." But if they weren't there, where could they be? He couldn't help replaying what Linus had said. He didn't want to believe they would ever do something that could be so hurtful, but… He also never thought he deserved someone like them to begin with. Ever since they had wormed their way into his life, things had seemed too good to be true. They had been the reason he was able to look at things in a brighter light; it was almost as if they had been that light themself at times.

But good things don't last forever. It was about time something happened to tear that happiness away from him.

"H-hey." A voice next to him spoke and he felt a hand gently being placed on his shoulder. He wanted to shrug it off, but he didn't want to move anymore.

"I'm fine." He preemptively attempted to say, but it only came out as a pathetic grumble.

"Tell me what's wrong, maybe I can help."

"It's nothing." He managed to mumble.

"It doesn't seem like nothing to me."

"Why do you care?" Shane all but glared at the doctor next to him, "We're not friends, and it's none of your business."

He seemed hurt by that, but Shane didn't care. It was no different than how things had been before. "Well… Even if we're not friends, why shouldn't I care? I'd like to think that I care about everyone, so if there's anything I can do to help, I'd like to do it."

Of course. A perfect answer. "You're just saying that because you're a doctor." He said dismissively, "It's your job to help others."

The other stalled, "I… suppose you're not wrong. But my job involves helping people's physical health, not mental. I'm not a psychologist by any means."

"I just accused you of adultery, why are you trying to be nice to me?"

Harvey shrugged. "Like I said, I don't blame you. Even if there's nothing I can do, there's no harm in telling me what's troubling you." He could mock Shane and make him feel worse. Kind of like what Linus had done. "I won't laugh at you." He said as if he'd read Shane's mind. "I just want to help. Honest."

It was obvious the man wouldn't shut up unless Shane said something or stood up to leave, which he currently did not have the strength to do. So talking was his only option.

Feeling more than defeated, he leaned back and shifted his gaze forward. "They haven't come home yet."

There was an exaggerated pause. "What do you mean?"

He squeezed his eyes shut. "I mean that they haven't come home!" He exclaimed, "They always come home around midnight, but… last night… they didn't come home at all." The end came out quieter as he tried to hold back scared, frustrated tears.

"Did you check around the farm? Maybe they-"

"Of course I did!" Shane glared at him again. "That's the first place I looked. But they weren't there. They weren't at the ranch, or the beach, or anywhere around town either. And I-" He took a deep breath and covered his face again, "I don't know where else they could be. They always tell me when they won't be back home, but this time they didn't and Linus said that maybe they didn't say anything because maybe they didn't want to tell me where they were going like they wouldn't want me to know. And I- I'm just- I don't know what to do or what to think anymore…"

"Hey, hey, it's okay. They have to be around somewhere. Pam was still around last night, so that means they couldn't be anywhere but around here, right? Why don't we go and ask around, see who saw them last? Someone must have an idea where they might be." He squeezed Shane's shoulder, attempting to be reassuring. "Calm down, take some deep breaths. I'll help you. We can split up to try and find them faster. Okay?"

Shane took some deep breaths as instructed. "Yeah." He nodded slightly, "Yeah, you're right. Okay. Let's go."

"Good." Harvey smiled, helping him stand. "Maru, I trust you'll be alright on your own for now?"

"Sure," the girl, who Shane had honestly forgot was there, "I'll be fine. Good luck finding them."

"Thanks." He mumbled as the two headed out.

"How about you go check the library, blacksmith, and carpenters and I check around here?" Harvey said, motioning to the town around them. Shane wasn't so sure if that was a good idea. Those places were kind of far out in comparison, so why- "I think those are the places they tend to visit the most, unless they're looking for something specific." … Oh.

"Alright" Shane said, waving as he headed toward the bridge, "Come find me if you figure something out."

"I will."

* * *

"They came in around 3 PM yesterday to have their axe upgraded." said the blacksmith. "Hey, since they already paid for it, why don't you take it?" Clint set the silver ace on the counter.

"Great." The other replied, taking the axe. It was heavier than he thought it would be, but still, he was able to carry it. He wondered how they were able to fling something like this around like paper. Either way, if he axe was here, then that means they wouldn't have been out chopping wood somewhere.

Neither Gunther nor Robin had anything helpful to say, so again he was at a loss. Harvey had yet to come and find him, so chances are he hadn't been able to find anything useful either.

With nothing in particular in mind, Shane dragged his feet over to a tree near the lake. Maybe watching the water would clear his mind… or something like that.

"What are you doing? I don't think I've ever seen you come around here." A voice spoke suddenly, startling him. He quickly looked in the direction the voice had come from and spotted Sebastian further down by the edge of the water. "What are you doing?" He repeated, taking a drag of his cigarette.

"Just, uh…" He quickly tried to think of a reason, but words escaped him.

The young adult shrugged, "Whatever. It's not any of my business anyway."

After a moment of awkward silence, Shane asked, "So… You talk to the farmer sometimes. Did you happen to see them yesterday?"

The other didn't reply immediately, only taking a long drag of the cigarette, making him think he wasn't going to reply at all. That maybe he was part of the whole thing; that they had told him where they were leaving to, just like they'd told Linus and not their husband.

"Yeah." He finally said, blowing out a puff of smoke. "I'm pretty sure I saw them going into the mine. Why?"

"Do remember what time it was?" Shane asked with urgency.

The other gave him a confused look. "I dunno. I don't keep a clock on me. Around 7, maybe?"

"P.M.?"

"Yeah."

The already bad feeling he had somehow turned worse. It wasn't abnormal for them to not _always_ tell him when they were going to go down into the mines. Sometimes they just went if they had some time left in the day. If they were done with everything else they had planned, it made sense for them to spend the rest of their time either at home, fishing, or caving. Two of those three were completely harmless, but the other certainly was not. There were dangerous monsters down in the mine, and while they were a very strong person, who was normally pretty careful, sometimes somethings could still catch them off guard and could not be prevented…

His mind raced with various possibilities, almost all of them being quite horrible. For most, he would honestly rather they had been with Harvey. The mines could even be troublesome for Merlon, and that was his _thing_. Sure they went down there more than everyone else, but they were still less experienced than Marlon. What if they overestimated themself, like they tended to fo, and got in a bad situation? What if there was something they just weren't prepared to handle? What if they were overpowered and-

"Is something wrong?" A concerned voice asked.

Shane turned towards the sound, once again forgetting that someone else was there. He stared, not able to answer, not wanting to say what he was thinking, lest any of them come true. The other seemed to get the idea.

Sebastian gave him a sympathetic look. "Maybe we should talk to Merlon." He suggested.

"You do that." Shane said, pulling his jacket closer around himself and tugging the axe behind him, "I'm going down there."

"What? That's a stupid idea, you're just going to get yourself hurt, too! I'm sure-" Unfortunately the older had already left the conversation.

* * *

Shane had never been into the mines before. Not that he could remember at least. It wasn't as cold as he had expected, or it wasn't on the main level. He imagined the lower, the colder it gets. Not sure what else to do, he headed for the elevator and pressed the last buttons until he found one that worked, since he figured they would start as low as they could go each time they came here.

For a moment there was no sign that the elevator was actually working, aside from the button lighting up when he pressed it. He was about to step out, but was glad he didn't when the floor suddenly jerked beneath him and the elevator began moving. The smell of earth overwhelmed his nose more than it already had been.

The temperature slowly declined, as he had expected it to, so he pulled his jacket closer around himself, not bothering to zip it up, since it was half broken anyway. The door to the elevator rattled, barely keeping closed. He couldn't see much beyond them; the light in the elevator illuminated only a few feet beyond the doors briefly before they closed again.

The color of the earth around him shifted, turning dark before going so cold it appeared blue. His breath was visible as he shivered from the freezing air around him. How did they manage to come down here so much? If Shane didn't have a reason to, he wouldn't be able to put up with this for long.

Luckily, or perhaps unluckily, the temperature seemed to be rising quickly. In fact, Shane soon found himself beginning to sweat. He contemplated taking off his jacket, but decided against it. It was probably better to have as much protection as possible, even if it was just a ratty, old jacket.

Finally, the elevator screeched to a halt and the doors flung open. Shane braced himself, raising the axe with both hands. Everything was silent, save for the creaking of the elevator shaft.

Cautiously, he stepped out and surveyed the area. There were a few torches laid out. keeping his back towards the wall, he followed the illuminated path they created. Nothing stopped him as he easily found a ladder leading down, which seemed like as good of a lead as to where to go as any.

It was too hard to carry the axe down, but obviously, he wasn't going to leave it behind, so he just hooked it behind him in his jacket. The head of the axe stuck out, the bottom point poking a new hole in his hood. Once his feet were both planted firmly on the ground, he took it out again.

He could hear various noises that he couldn't quite place; he'd never heard anything like it before. Shiftfully and watchfully he made his way in, back to the wall. He thought his eyes were playing tricks on him, but after it happened, again and again, he determined that the rocks and shadows _were_ moving. But that's not what kept his attention. What _did _was the flock of red bats swarming a small area. At first, he was good to stay as far away from there as possible, but then he noticed the figure in the middle of them all.

Laying on the ground, unmoving and repeatedly being bombarded by the bats, was the farmer. Not even thinking about his next move, he charged forward, axe swinging as much as he could swing it. The bats screeched, scattering in all different directions.

Shane wasn't a fighter. He's thrown a few punches in his time, but he wasn't a fighter, and he certainly didn't know how to use a weapon (especially one as heavy as that damn axe). If he did have the experience, it wouldn't have mattered much. The only thing he was thinking about was getting the creatures away from them. He flailed the axe around wildly, the weight of it throwing him off balance countless times. Most of the winged rats easily flew out of the way, but when he did manage to hit, they fell to the floor and stayed there. That was what made him notice that a lot of them were already injured. Good, as there was no way he'd of been able to beat them all otherwise, not if the things had won against the farmer.

Only a few remained, and Shane was not feeling so good. With each swing, his arms seemed to get heavier and heavier. Their teeth and claws dug in before he was able to shake them off. He knew it was mainly adrenaline that allowed him to still fight. Luckily, as he smacked down another, the rest seemed to accept defeat and fluttered off into the darkness.

Attempting to remain alert, Shane finally crouched to take a look at them. It seemed obvious that a lot of their wounds were done by the bats, but there were plenty of others as well. A lot of which appeared to be more serious.

He should check their pulse, he thought, but he was too scared to do so. Too scared that he wouldn't be able to find it. So he just stared at them, unsure what else to do.

What could he possibly do without them? Were they even breathing? Shane felt sick, a pain settling in him as panic took over even more. Shakily, he set the axe down, grabbed their shoulders, and gave them a shake.

Oh god, they weren't moving, they were hurt, and they weren't breathing. They weren't breathing!

"No. No, no, no, please no." it couldn't be happening, they were supposed to be strong enough for the both of them! They were the one who was able to handle everything that came their way, they couldn't just go and die on him! "C'mon, you can't do this to me!" He shook them harder, their head lolling back and forth as if they were spineless.

"Keep quiet, you're attracting their attention." Shane whipped around at the sound of the voice, reaching for the axe until he realized that it was only Marlon and not a threat. The actual words spoken registered next. Sure enough, it seemed some of the shadows and rocks had begun to move in their direction.

"What do we do?" He asked, as quietly as his voice would allow, "They- their not-... They're hurt and I-I can't-"

"Take a deep breath." Marlon advised, his time calm as he watched around them, "Settle down and think for a moment."

Think? They weren't breathing, so what did it matter anymore? Good things never last, it was past the time for this one to go.

A monster came a little too close, Marlon drew his sword and forced it back with ease. He quickly stepped forward and followed through, the monster disintegrating in a matter of seconds. But there were plenty more around. Shane could easily push past Marlon and throw himself-

"Hey!" The elder's voice snapped for his attention, "Calm down and take a look at them again." Confused, Shane first looked to the monsters before his gaze went back down to the stillness in his arms. "You see? It'll be alright. No need to go getting yourself killed."

Shane never felt so relieved to feel absolutely insane. It was rough, haggard, and uneven, but they were breathing nonetheless.

"How do we get them out of here?" he asked.

"I'll take the axe. You carry them. There should be another elevator a floor or two down."

"Down?"

Marlon gave him a look before crouching to pick up the weapon. "'S a lot easier than trying to drag someone up, don't you think?"

Shane sighed. This was going to be tough, but there wasn't much of a choice.

* * *

With the elder man's help, and careful timing, they were able to make it to the next elevator relatively unscathed. Marlon himself had taken the majority of the damage as he blocked any creature that came too close.

They were safe now, but he still had to move quickly. The clinic was way in town, and they had no time to spare. It was obvious that the farmer needed to be seen immediately, so Shane made a beeline in that direction, ignoring anyone and everyone in the way.

Maru gasped when they burst through the door of the clinic. He tried to tell her that they needed help, but only managed to stare at her for a moment before collapsing.

* * *

The second he opened his eyes, he tried to sit up. He didn't get very far, his muscles screaming in protest. With a groan, he flopped back onto the bed.

"Oh, you're awake?" Harvey entered his peripheral. (He hadn't even noticed he was at the clinic.) "How are you feeling?"

"Fuckin' awful." He croaked, keeping his eyes closed from the bright lights.

"Well, yeah. Marlon said you went deep into the mines on your own. That was incredibly dangerous." The other shifted, taking a long pause. Shane cracked an eye open long enough to see him looking away, face ridden with worry. What was he looking at? Was someone else there? "It's probably good that you did." He continued, "I had to perform emergency surgery right away." Emergency surgery? "I don't want to think about what would have happened if they'd been left down there for any longer."

God, how could he forget?! Suddenly panicking again, he scrambled to move, flipping the blanket off of him. Pain flared up as he forced himself to sit up and slid his legs over the side of the bed.

"Woah, woah, hold on!" Harvey held his shoulders to stop him from standing, "You shouldn't be moving that much yet."

"Where are they." Shane groaned.

"Calm down, it's okay." Harvey soothed, "They're right here." He carefully stepped back, keeping his arms outstretched in case Shane tried to stand again, and reached for the curtain. He moved it out of the way, and there they were, laying in the neighboring hospital bed.

He could see them, but it wasn't enough. With a grunt, he pushed himself up, Harvey protesting the whole way, and stumbled over to the other bed. Maybe it was the lighting, but they did look better already, even if it was only marginally so. He slumped into the spot next to them, watching them carefully. Yes, there it was. He could see the rise and fall of their chest. And just to be sure, he held a hand over their mouth to feel their breath.

"They'll be okay." Harvey confirmed.

"Huh?" He slipped under the sheets.

"Uh, you… don't need to worry anymore. They'll be okay."

He didn't want to crowd them, but he couldn't help at least taking their hand. Thankfully, they sensed his presence and adjusted against him. "Say it again." He sighed.

"They'll be okay." Spoken this time with a slight chuckle.

"Again."

"They'll be okay."

"Again."

"They'll be okay."

"Again."

They'll be okay.


	2. Since that Night

Shane had a quiet day off at home. Most of his time had been spent lounging around the house, but he did manage to get a few things done. The chickens were tended to, the kitchen counters were wiped down, the bed was made, and he even cleaned out the fridge (of course, some of that had gone into his stomach, but his spouse didn't need to know that).

They had been working extra hard lately, spending almost all of their time either out in the field, fishing, or running errands for the other townsfolk. Something about raising money to pay a wizard? Shane didn't understand exactly, but if that's what they wanted to do, he was more than happy to offer his help wherever he could. Though typically that was just making sure they had a warm meal to come home to.

He was never all that great at cooking. If you asked him, he'd say that he's absolutely awful at it. But they never complained, even if it was obvious that the meat wasn't seasoned enough, or if the potatoes were cold in the middle, or if the meal was only reheated from the night before. It seemed like, despite the poor quality, it made them happy.

So now every night around 7 or 8, he'd have something ready for them.

As he sat at their kitchen table, two plates of long gone cold spaghetti set before him, he tried not to think about how it was already nearing 9. Ever since the night when they almost didn't come home, they had actively told him if they would be out past dinner time. Shane didn't think about how they didn't this time. Surely, it was he who forgot. He was awful like that sometimes, forgetting about important things. Birthdays and anniversaries were the worst. That had to be it. They were fine.

_That's what you thought last time_. The image of their crumpled form lying limp plagued his mind once again. Ever since that night, he couldn't stop thinking about it. The way their wounds bled, how it had appeared like they weren't breathing at all, how their head lolled when he tried to shake them awake.

Many times he's thought that if he'd only of left sooner, that if he'd started looking for them earlier, that they wouldn't have gotten so badly hurt. It had been his fault that they had been so badly injured that they needed emergency surgery. Harvey said that they were close to death, and he knew that it was all because of him.

He stared at their empty seat across from him, trying to stop his breathing from becoming labored. What was he supposed to do? What _could_ he dow? He'd barely done anything to help last time. He'd been too weak.

"_Oh god, they weren't moving, they were hurt, and they weren't breathing. They weren't breathing!"_ The chair scraped across the floor as he forcefully stood. Even if he wasn't much help, he had to do something. They were everything, the reason he'd been able to try and get better, everyone loved them. They weren't strong enough to take on everything, so he needed to step up and help. He needed to find them immediately before it was too late.

The cool air hit him all at once. He crossed his arms and rubbed his shoulders, regretting not grabbing his jacket before he left, but he didn't have to go back in for it.

This time he didn't bother with the farm or the Ranch and headed right for the town. This time he would march right to the guild, get Marlon, and go straight down into the mines. He didn't have time to bother thinking about the other possibilities. They wouldn't be in the ocean or on the tracks or with someone else, no he went over that already and it was ridiculous! They weren't stupid enough to let something like any of those happen, he went over this, _he went over this!_

But what if he was wrong? What if he was wasting his time going to the mines? What if they were struggling somewhere else? What if they'd gotten hurt in the forest this time? What if part of the cliff fell away while they were standing there? What if they tripped on the dock and fell over and no one was there to notice that they hit their head and weren't coming back up? What if -

"Shane?" He stopped in his tracks, his head snapping up at the sound of the voice. "What's wrong? Did something happen?" He was almost too stunned to consider who was in front of him, but there was no doubt that it was them, his spouse. They looked worried for some reason.

He opened his mouth to say something, but he didn't know what. He was too busy processing everything to think of words to speak. Yes, it was them, standing right before his very eyes and talking to him. Either that or he was hallucinating. Is it possible to hallucinate off of pure panic?

They closed the space between them. "What's wrong?" They gingerly held his shoulders and asked again.

Ah, he could feel them. So not a hallucination. With a shaky hand, he brushed their cheek with his thumb. It was grounding, so he used his other hand to grip their waist. They seemed to know that the touch was helping to calm him, so they wrapped their arms around him and pulled him close.

"It's okay." They spoke quietly and rubbed his back. "Just breathe. It's okay."

Breathe. Right. He closed his eyes and focused on their breathing. The expand and compress of their chest against his. They were breathing. They were okay.

"I-I thought-..." His voice came out more hoarse than he expected. After a moment to clear his throat, he tried again. "I noticed you hadn't come home yet, so I…" They stilled in his arms, for what reason he wasn't sure. Maybe they thought he was assuming something again, or that he was overreacting, or - he didn't know, but before he continued to dwell on it ton it too much. "I-I-I thought you might be hurt. That… That this time I didn't leave in time and that you might be-." He couldn't finish that sentence. Thinking it was one thing. Saying it out loud would be too much.

They squeezed him, their shoulders beginning to shake as well. "I'm so sorry." Their voice wavered, "Emily needed help roughing some furniture and she didn't actually know where she wanted it all, then we just got talking, and I didn't even tell you that I was going over there because I didn't think it would take that long in the first place." They pulled away just enough to look at him, eyes red and puffy with tears, "I'm sorry, I should have told you and paid closer attention to the time. I didn't mean to make you worry about me."

With a sigh, he closed his eyes and pushed their noses together. Taking in their presence he could feel his anxiety rolling off of him. "It's alright." He smiled, "I'm just glad you're okay."

"I'm okay." They chuckled softly, "I'm glad you're okay, too."


End file.
